Alleged drug trafficker from Puerto Rico arrested

DUNKIRK – An alleged fugitive drug trafficker from San Juan, Puerto Rico was arrested here Sunday evening after police found him acting suspiciously and trying to cover his face from plain view at 5th Street and Leopard Street about 6:10 p.m. Sunday, Dunkirk police announced Monday.

Eric Johan Garcia-Rivas, 26, was found to be a fugitive wanted by the FBI on a federal indictment recently handed up in San Juan, charging him with conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, investigators said. According to the FBI, Garcia-Rivas is part of a violent San Juan street gang that uses violence, weapons, threats and intimidation to traffic in drugs in a public housing project in that city.

After spending the night in the Dunkirk lockup, Garcia-Rivas was turned over to federal authorities Monday morning.